Drew Brees has a new backup quarterback, as the team has officially inked former Tampa Bay Buccaneers and first overall pick in the draft Jameis Winston to a one-year deal.
Jameis Winston’s one-year contract with the Saints carries a base value of $1.1M, per source. He got a $148,000 signing bonus, a base salary of $952,000 and $3.4M is available in incentives. Jameis prioritized the chance to learn and grow as a player.
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) April 29, 2020
Winston led the NFL with 5,109 passing yards in 2019, he also became the first quarterback in league history to throw for at least 30 touchdown passes and 30 interceptions in the same season.
He was replaced by new Bucs QB future Hall of Famer Tom Brady, who left New England to join Tampa Bay, pushing the free agent Winston out of a job.
Reports said that the Steelers were interested in signing Winston to backup Ben Roethlisberger, but the new Saints QB said that being able to learn from Brees was a deciding factor.
“Being a part of the New Orleans Saints — being a part with Drew Brees, Taysom Hill, Sean Payton, coach Joe Lombardi, coach Pete Carmichael Jr. — when you think about that room, that’s like a Harvard education in quarterback school,” Winston said Tuesday during an appearance on “Chalk Talk” with Charlie Ward on Instagram Live.
“So I wanted to put my ego aside — put the money to the side — to think about my family, think about my career.
“And there was no better position than to be in the same room with someone that I’ve really looked up to, that I’ve admired since I’ve been playing this game, in Drew Brees.”